I can hear the trolling already. Many readers, particularly reading this through twitter, will comment on the title of this article. The purpose is obviously not to get a reaction, but to make a case why Vernon Wells and the Yankees can be a fit. I will play the role of the prosecutor and the burden of proof will be on me to show whether there is a fit or not. At the end of this article, you will play the role of the jury and be able to state whether this is something that can be worked out.

I have to start out by pointing out that Wells about to enter the sixth year of a $126 million extension he signed with the Toronto Blue Jays. For next season as well as the 2014 season, Wells will be paid $21 million each season. Add in the fact he hit just .230, 11, 29 in 77 games for the Angels last year, and the question would be... Why would the Yankees, or any other team for that matter, even think about taking on a guy like that with that contract? Maybe some Yankees fans would take Wells' contract for the next two seasons if he was traded straight up for Alex Rodriguez and the remainder of his contract. While that could be considered, thats not what I am getting at. The Angels have a log jam in their outfield after the signing of Josh Hamilton. Mike Trout, Hamilton, Peter Bourjos and Mark Trumbo (if he is not playing 3B) are all capable MLB everyday OFs and Kendry Morales is their everyday DH. While the Angels may look to move Bourjos or Trumbo, they would prefer to move on from Wells, who has not regained the form he had in his best years in Toronto. The question is, how much do the Angels want to move Wells? The Angels had a similar problem after they signed free agent OF Gary Matthews, Jr to a 5 year, $46 million contract before the 2007 season, around the time Wells signed his extension with the Blue Jays. After one season, the Angels decided to go in a different direction and signed Tori Hunter to play CF, changing Matthews role on the team. After season 3, the Angels became desperate to move GMJ, so desperate they traded him to the Mets before the 2010 season. The Angels traded Matthews and paid $22.3 million of the remaining $23.4 million of the last two years of his contract. Could the Angels consider doing the same thing in regards to Wells? Wells is owed $42 million over the next two seasons ($21 million in 2013 and 2014). What type of role will he have on this team? Can the Angels even fathom paying a 5th OF that type of money? Obviously, they have to. Unless a team tries to deal for him. A team like the Yankees (this may have been discussed already) could see exactly how much of this contract the Angels are willing to pay. $15 million. $18 million. Maybe even more. Maybe the Yankees take on $6 million this year and $3 million next season to help them stay under the $189 million luxary tax threshold. For that money, it would be worth it for the Yankees to take a chance on Wells. The Yankees currently have an OF that has three left handed hitters (Curtis Granderson, Brett Gardner, Ichiro Suzuki) and Wells could benefit from playing his home games in Yankee Stadium. And the Angels would still be paying for the majority of the contract. Arte Moreno did this once with GMJ, he may be willing to do it again with Wells.

When it comes to the biggest surprises of 2012, its easy to say the Baltimore Orioles and Oakland Athletics should be ranked one and two as neither team was expected to contend this season. I would rank the Chicago White Sox as third, before the Washington Nationals, simply because many considered the Nationals as a sleeper team this season. But when it comes to the disappointments, a reasonable case could be made for several teams to be number one in this list. Based on what was expected from the Orioles and Athletics, the surprises are more concrete than the disappointments. I'll start out with the Philadelphia Phillies, the five time defending NL East Champions who came into the season with three of the best starting pitchers in the game. Of course, they started the season without there best two offensive players, Ryan Howard and Chase Utley, but overall they have underachieved all season and will be perhaps the biggest surprise being on the outside looking in at the 2012 postseason. If you want to talk about the team that won the offseason "on paper" award; the so called Philadelphia Eagles 2011-2012 "Dream Team" distinction, which of course is dubious, I think there is more of a discussion. The team that has completely not put anything together would be the Miami Marlins. This team was set up for big things, as they opened up their wallets to sign free agents Jose Reyes, Mark Buehrle and Heath Bell, bring in manager Ozzie Guillen and open their new ballpark. Many people jumped on this bandwagon, looking at the Marlins as a favorite to overtake the Phillies in the NL East. From the very start, it didn't seem to work out for the Marlins. The lack of attendence led to yet another firesale. Its safe to say that this was a collossal disappointment, but was this the biggest one? Though there is still a chance the Los Angeles Angels will make the postseason, there was no team who seemed to have as much firepower as the Angels, both in the lineup and in the starting rotation. A lineup that already included Mark Trumbo, Tori Hunter, Vernon Wells and Howie Kendrick would already have the much awaited return of DH Kendry Morales. They then added Albert Pujols to the mix, lengthening their lineup. A starting rotation that included Jared Weaver, Dan Haren and Ervin Santana added LHP CJ Wilson, making it one of the deepest in the game. Many were picking the Angels to win the AL Pennant even before the emergence of top prospect Mike Trout amd his transformation into a star. Add the trading deadline deal for Zack Greinke, and there is little excuse for this team to not be dominating the league. I think a case could be made that the Angels have been an even bigger disappointment than the Marlins. Yes, the Marlins are in last place in the NL East and the Angels have a winning record. But, the Angels had the more dominant team on paper, an essential team of All-Stars. The Marlins had several good players, but cases could be made that the Phillies and possibly Nationals were better teams. Another disappointment has been the Boston Red Sox. They are now well on their way to their first losing season since 1997. This is a team with a ton of star power, and obviously everything that could possibly go wrong has. Perhaps one could vote this way, as things have not gotten worse for a team with such high expectations. I honestly think a case could be made for all four teams. I have enclosed a poll, so you can vote on which team has been the biggest disappointment of the 2012 season.